Retarding device for electromagnets.



No. 821,504. PATENTED MAY 22, 1906.

P. KENNEDY. I RETARDING DEVICE FOR ELEGTROMAGNETS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 13, 1905. RENEWED OCT. 21, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

g v v @331 QHO LM 6 a 'No. 821,504. PATBNTED MAY 22, 1906.

P. KENNEDY. RETARDING DEVICE FOR ELEGTROMAGNETS.

APPLIOATION FILED 1 22122 905. RENEWED 0012.21, 1905. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

w vbvwooao PATENT OFFICE.

UNITED STATES PATRICK KENNEDY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y. F BETARDING DEVICE FDR ELECTROMAG NETS.-

Specification of Letters Patent.

- Patented May 22, 1906.

Applicationfiled February 13, 1906. Renewed October 21, 1906. Serial'No. 283,806.

T at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PATRICK KEN-NED'Y, a citizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings, and

: are employed, for example, in non-interfer ence signaling devices for'electric fire-alarm systems; and the object is .to provide the retarding device with regulable automatic means for actuating a make-and-break de vice in an electric current when the armature of the main electromagnet reaches a prede termined point in its retarded movement toward'or. from the pole of its magnet.

In the'accompanying drawings two forms I of the invention are illustratedone where the armature is retarded in its approach to the pole of the excited magnet, and the other where the armature is retarded in its movement away from the pole of its magnet.

' Figures 1 to 3 illustrate the first form, and Figs. 4 and 5 thesecond form. Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the device. of the retarding mechanism only, and Fig. 3 "is an enlarged sectional view illustrating the clutch device. Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, illustrating the second form of the invention; and Fig. 5- is a plan view of the clutch device on a largerscale. Fi 6 illustrates a modified form of the circultreaking detent device.

Referring primarily to the first three figures of the drawings, which show the device adapted to a signaling apparatus or instrument where the circuit is normally open, it may be explained that only so much of such signaling apparatus is shown as is convenient for explaining the operation of the present invention. In this case when the circuit is closed through the main magnet of the in strument the armature of the ma net is attracted, but moves slowly towar the pole thereof, being retarded in its movement, and

that when it reaches a predetermined point in its travel a regulable detent device actuated by the armature operates a make-andbreak device to break a circuit through another or auxiliary magnet, which may be in a separate circuit or a shunt, as the case may be. In these figures, 1 designates the main electromagnet; 2, its circuit, which includes cuit, and G a generator in the circuit.

'curved racket 18, which Fig. 2 is a plan view a generator G; 3, a break-contact wheel such as is commonly employed in such si naling devices; and 4 the contact-brushes, t rou h which the teeth on said wheel complete t e circuit 2 through the magnet 1 at intervals as the'wheel 3 rotates.

'5 is an auxiliary electromagnet, 6 its ciIrn this circuit is a make-and-break device having an adjustable contact 8, connected in the circuit through a bindin g-post 8, and a s ring-contact 9, connected in the circuit t ough a binding-post 9*. The purpose is to cause the armature 10 of the main magnet 1 at a redetermined point in its retarded approac to the pole of its magnet to break the circuit 6 by, moving the spring-contact 9 away from the sltationarcontact 8. The means foreifecting this wi 1 now be described.

The armature-lever 11, carrying the armature 10, is fulcrumed at y and has a retracting-spring 12. On this lever is secured a gears with'a pinion 14, and this inion carries a spur-wheel 15,

which gears t rough an intermediate pinion 16 with a pinion 17, fixed on the arbor 18 of a detent-carrier 19. This carrier has in it a series of sockets 20, in any oneof which may be set a detent-stud 21, so disposed that when the carrier 19 is rotated in the direction of the arrow 2 the stud 21 will impinge upon the spring-contact 9 and move it away from the contact 8, and thus break the cirvcuit through the magnet 5. In effecting this rotation of the carrier 19 the armature is retarded in its movement by means now to be described. The pinion 14 is mounted loosely on an arbor 22 and has an obli ue slot 23, Figs 2 and 3, in its boss in which p ays a stud 24, I set in the arbor. Adjacent to the boss of the pinion is the main wheel 25 of the retardingtrain, and this wheel is loose on the arbor 22. When the armature 10 is drawn toward the magnet, thefirst slight rotative movement of the pinion 14 about its arbor causes the slot '23 to so act on the stud 24 as to put the boss of the inion into frictional driving contact with t e wheel 25, and the train is, thus driven. This train consists of the wheels 25, 26, and 27 and the fly 28. When the circuit through the magnet 1 .is broken and the spring retracts the armature, the first slight rotative movement of the pinion 14 in the other direction moves it laterally out of contact with the wheel 25 by reason of the pin and oblique slot, and thus frees it from the retarding-train, so that it will not be retarded thereby when retracted. The carrier 19 will, however, be returned by this movement to its original position, as the pinion is fixed to the Wheel 15.

In the construction of Figs. 4 and 5 the same reference characters are used to designate parts that are alike in both forms of the invention. In this second form of the invention the circuit 2 is normally closed and is broken at intervals by the break-contact wheel 3*. The retardation is effected on the retraction of the armature by a weightl2 which is the-equivalent of the spring 12. (Shown in Fig. 1.) It will be noted by reference to Fig. 5 that the obliquity of the slot 23 is opposite to that seen, for example, in Fig. 2, as it must be in order to effect the clutching when the armature is retracted. The intermediate pinion 16 is omitted in this second construction, as the operative rotative movement of the pinion is the reverse of that shown in Fig. 1.

Otherwise than as above indicated the construction is the same as that before described. In this construction when the circuit is broken through the principal magnet 1 the armature 10 will be slowly retracted by the weight 12 the clutch device acting in this movement to connect the pinion 14 with the retarding-train. At a predetermined point in the retractive movement of the armature the stud 21 in the carrier-disk19 will act to break the circuit 6 through the auxiliary,

magnet.

The purpose of the carrier-disk 19 with the sockets to receive the stud 21 is to enable the stud to be adjusted and set so as to open the circuit 6 at any point desired in the travel of the armature 10. Obviously the sockets 20 constitute only one of many devices for effecting the object sought. Any equivalent means may be employed for effecting the adjustment of the circuit-breaking detent, so that it will be brought into operative position at any point in the movement of the armature. For example, Fig. 6 includes two views of a modified form of this detent device. In these views the carrier-disk 19 is plain or without sockets and the stud 21 is a setscrew which serves to secure a clip 20 to the rim of the disk at any point desired.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. A device for the purpose specified, having an electromagnet,1ts armature, armaturelever, and means for retracting the armature, an electric circuit, a makeandbreak device in said circuit, a retarding device for the armature, and regulable, automatic means for actuating said make-and-break device, said means comprisin a rotating carrier provided with an adjustable detent which acts on said make-and-break device, and mechanism between the armature-lever and said rotating carrier through which the former aotuates the latter.

2. A device for the purpose specified, having an electromagnet, its armature, armaturelever, and means for retracting the armature, an electric circuit, a make-and-break device in said circuit, a retarding device for the armature, and regulable, automatic means for actuating said make-and-break device, said means comprising a rotating carrier provided with a plurality of sockets, a detent-stud to fix in said sockets, said stud being adapted to actuate said make-and-break device, and gearing between the armature-lever and said carrier through which the former rotates the latter.

3. A device for the purpose specified, having an electromagnet, its armature, armaturelever, and means for retracting the armature, an electric circuit, a make-and-break device in said circuit, a retarding device for the ar mature, and regulable, automatic means for actuating said make-and-break device, said means comprising a rotating carrier provided with an adjustab e detent which acts on said make-and-break device, and mechanism between the armature lever and said carrier which rotates the latter operatively when the magnet attracts its armature.

4. A device for the purpose specified, having an electromagnet, its armature, armaturelever, and retracting means, a retardingtrain, the main wheel of which is loose on its arbor, the said arbor, another wheel adjacent to the former, loose on said arbor and having a boss with an oblique slot therein, a stud set in the arbor and engagin said slot, and a curved rack carried by the armature-lever and gearing With last-named wheel, said slot and pin serving to force the two Wheels into frictional driving relations.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name, this 10th day of February, 1905, in the presence of two subscribin witnesses.

. PATRICK ENNEDY.

Witnesses:

JOHN REED, J. L. WATSON. 

